Also, any day now, Third Life and Mooncusser reissues should be available from:Sweat Lodge GuruLos Discos Enfantasmesstarting to record the next record this weekend with John Twells for a late Winter release on Bathetic-Thanks for an incredible 2011...can't wait to see what 2012 holds in store...

Monday, November 7, 2011

Just wanted anyone who might be looking for MOONCUSSER, as it sold out so quickly everywhere that it will be reissued later this month on the fabulous Los Discos Enfantasmes I'll post again when it's available-2-3 weeks from nowsexy new art work lil' piece from Simon Fowler as well....

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Mooncusser is a bruising, half-hour colossus helmed by a single pilot, Boston-based soundsculptor John Kolodij, who uses guitar and effects to build his High aura'd material into massive ambient-drone slabs. The new release appears on Yldemir, a year-old cassette-oriented label specializing in free improv, noise, and drone artists, and follows the 2010 releases Third Life (Reverb Worship) and Bridge Cable Suite (self-released) plus a split disc with André Foisy on Stunned Records. Each Mooncusser side features fifteen minutes of crushing, guitar-generated dronescaping, with all of it drenched in rain-like hiss and moving with the unstoppable force of a massive cloud formation.

For its opening three minutes, side one gradually swells into a molten swarm of grime and corrosion until a sheet-metal blast pierces the haze and splinters the collective sound into skin-lacerating shards. Kolodij expertly controls the sound so that a careful balance is achieved, resulting in a sonic mass that asserts itself forcefully without being abrasive or ear-piercing. In fact, ten minutes into side one, a sense of peacefulness emerges as the material quietens, clearing a path for a scalpel-sharp roar to come rolling in first, followed by waves crashing ashore and tolling bells. Side B picks up where the first leaves off with a widescreen ebb'n'flow of seething howl that roars for five minutes until, startlingly, a delicate acoustic guitar briefly appears to give the meditation a pastoral aura before a rippling mass comes crushing in to obliterate it in seconds. Once again, though, Kolodij shows himself to be a deft hand indeed at manning the controls and shaping the gargantuan sound mass into musical form. Mastered by John Twells, the set's a fine collection of blistering, axe-generated meditations that should be heard at top volume so that the full measure of its awesome force can be experienced.

Foxy DigitalisJohn Kolodij returns as High Aura’d with Mooncusser, a thirty-minute burn of glacial (both in pacing and sheer density) guitar drones that mixes Leif Inge’s immensely blurred melancholy and Belong’s static sheen. Several solo guitar projects have excelled in the celestial pedal-processed guitar drone category in recent years, namely Brainworlds and Expo ’70 to highlight a just couple, but Kolodij’s Mooncusser will surely stand as a testament to the genre’s finer points. Even Terence Hannum’s (of Locrian fame) artwork adds to the grim vastness of the Deeeeeeeeeep-Space drones evoked by the music within. Adding to the pitch blackness of the sounds is the fine mastering work by Ken Linehan and Type head honcho John Twells, who records equally vast, haunting drones as Xela.

The tape’s A-side gradually builds it’s distant rumblings with a chorus of looped, distorted feedback. As the amplifier seems to kick in and out as Kolodij charts his course, giving the electric vibe of an improvised live recording. The rise of cavernous tones gradually swells into a sheer howl of maxed-out drone. Eerie passages and shifting chords pass alongside one another evoking Windy & Carl at their deepest and coldest moments, but Kolodij’s tones never quite sound as though they’re produced by a guitar. As the first half of Mooncusser plays out, the piece seems to weight itself down and slow to a crawl. It’s the audio equivalent of one of Eno’s 14 Video Paintings. Kolodij reveals his hand a bit on the second side when he strips back the noise for a few moments. Following an extended melancholic loop, the piece makes room for a spacious yet clean melody of plucked guitar before breaking open into complete, symphonic drone. In the end, all your left with is a frail, Basinski-like loop that decays into nothing.

More YDLMIER greatness, this time from thee mighty High Aura’d pumping out another year end contender. Boston’s number one guitar drone champ puts out his best album yet. Silky smooth feedback segues perfectly into toothy grit, a hundred layers of threatening underwater bliss, swirling in a tide pool of shimmering black gold, deep dark harmonies beaching themselves in the moonlight. Soaring Windy & Carl euphoria, brief Fahey picks, and a wall of absolute beauty. Too much of everything, if this were any more awesome I might die. Mooncusser fuckin throws it down.

I'm playing a new piece, for ebow, pedal steel, lap steel and field recordings at Cafe Fixe in Brookline, MA on November 15th-as part of a series by Non-EventI'll be performing to a brand new film by Omar Mashaal-really cool stuff : INFOI'll also occasionally when I have records, tapes, etc post them here for sale:High aura'd DISCOGSThanks!

Thursday, July 28, 2011

New review from Foxy Digitalis:For those who like to immerse themselves completely in their music, it should come as no surprise that Stunned Records is home to yet another alternate-dimension-dominating split cassette. This time, it’s from fantastic newcomer High Aura’d and Locrian’s grim reaper André Foisy. The artists’ pieces are extremely complementary – each offering a completely different set of techniques and preferences that almost seem to communicate with each other. Yet the tape truly feels like one solid work of art- the sign of a good split.

On High Aura’d’s side, John Kolodij makes a whole world out of his reverberating guitar – beckoning spirits from all corners of the universe in a divine thunderstorm of sound. It’s really just awe-inspiring stuff, the kind of drone that makes you hope for a grand double-LP style album in the future. On the flip, Foisy beckons some spirits of his own, but this time, it’s from a much darker underworld of sound. Waves of evil crash through an ocean of demonic moans and devilish lurches of guitar. This is the stuff from which psychedelic nightmares are born.

Just a few points of note;NEw re-release of Third Life on cassette with a reworking by XELA on the flipside on Sweat Lodge Guru late Summerrecording going on for a short run cassette by the mighty Ydlmier for the Fall and then a 12" for Bathetic Recordsplus a few Fall dates including Sept 30th- Monkey House Burlington, VT with XELA & Corridors and October 1st Montreal, CAN at Casa Del Popolo with XELA, Corridors, & La Revelateur

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Work/Death's sound runs from crumbling distortion and dense synth textures to delicate melodies and field recordings. "Shimmering string and organ drones...churning clouds of electronics accumulate over a haunting tonal core. There is a calm buried under all the bristling textures, a gentleness that hovers inside the static."-The Wire. Connect the dots between musique concrete, electro-acoustic improv, harsh noise and the pop song.

...While much of his work explores free improvisation he also draws heavily from his love for melody, the simplicity of minimalist composers, a long love of flamenco.Pitcher has released numerous projects with Digitalis Recordings (USA), Camera Obscura (Australia), Tape Drift (USA), Moonpalace (Spain), Dutch East India (USA), and his own Mudita Records (USA).He has performed and recorded with many artists including Pauline Oliveros, Fred Frith, Ikue Mori, Okkyung Lee, Scott Amendola, Christian Kiefer, J. Matthew Gerken, Denison Witmer, Sarah Weaver, Mark Dresser, Mike Bullock, & many more.In 2008, Pitcher completed an MFA at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he studied improvisation with Pauline Oliveros.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

KILLER SPLIT CITY. Almost TOO much awesome running through this tape. High Aura’d, Boston’s “up and coming” guitar droner John Kolodij, who probably got a lot of worshippers when they saw him opening for Barn Owl on tour last year, teams up with André Foisy, one half of the Locrian duo, who somehow manages to singlehandedly retain all the brilliance of Locrian.

Kolodij takes the A side with “Dusk Latitudes,” a 20+ drift through hazey space/time curves. His Americana stylings don’t show up immediately, instead doing some heavy breathing with the strings & pulses, layin the foundation for the resonant steel slides to come. It’s a foreboding piece, the unnerving tones that ring in your head the moments between the challenge to an old fashioned gun slinging duel and the duel itself. And then at about 7:45, the fucking chaos reigns down, blood pounding through your ears and clouding your eyes, heavy scary shit, a wall of reverb that only lasts as long as the gunfight, and the remainder is you lying full of holes in the bloody dust, surrounded by thick layers of warm drones, looking up at the enlightening sky, thinking about the sincere & beautiful. Truly fantastic stuff right here.

Foisy’s untitled piece is an amazingly perfect companion to “Dusk Latitudes,” the blackened psych string drones that saturate the afterlife. Not overly bleak in the beginning, it weaves a grey SotL/KBD type classical, with distant thunder and a deep sobriety, building patiently upon layers of tension, each minute that passes increasing the sense of gorgeous dread, eventually bringing in somber monk-like vocals that are buried in the gloom. The elegance of this is that it escalates to pillars of dense, grandiose, and terrifying noise drone but you don’t notice until it’s toppling over you with tortured screaming, a fury of electronics, and buzzing riffage that pours out of your speakers, black, painful, and loud as fuck.

I definitely didn’t imagine that High Aura’d & André Foisy would make a solid gold split together, but holy fuck this tape is unbelievable. Stunned always does great work but they totally outdid themselves with this one. Just fucking incredible stuff from both of these guys. Now is it too much to ask for a collaboration?

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

The 2x Cassette/Digital curated compliation on Electric Temple Records entitled "Gaman: A Ceremony for Japan" is a benefit directly contributing the recovery of Japan. We have all been troubled by the happenings across the sea, but for almost all musicians in the experimental music scene, Japan is a place of sacred innovation, inimitable soul, and a relentless discipline unlike any other country. We know this will carry over in to the recovery process of the current natural disasters, but for us musicians, this is a small token of our appreciation for the things we've been given by such a beautiful country with so much tradition. All proceeds will go to Shelterbox: http://www.shelterbox.org/. This organization provides emergency shelter and lifesaving supplies for families around the world who are affected by disasters at the time when they need it the most. They also are currently set up in Japan, making sure these beautiful gifts are affecting families one by one. As the benefit proceeds, we will be tracking the boxes that make it to families in Japan -- that way each and every one of us that contributed know directly how we are helping and influencing, at least in some small way. This compilation features tracks from 24 artist across 2 cassettes including Sic Alps, Amen Dunes, Forma, Loren Conners, Glenn Jones, Steve Gunn, and many Thanks to John Kolodij, John Twells, Nicole Yalaz, and National Audio Company for their immense help in making this project a reality. Please join us in donating a small token for those in need.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Spectral Rehab present Deaf Center, live in Boston for the very first time.This is a very rare set we're very proud to announce, in a small intimate venue with GRAND PIANO.Support will come from :Ezekiel Honig (NYC) - Honig's new album 'Folding In On Itself' will be out on Type in May, so come see what it's all going to sound like.High Aura'd (MA) - Gorgeous, mysterious guitar soundscapes and hazy drones.Spectral Rehab lads John Xela (Type Records) and Ian Lawrence (Barge Recordings) will provide DJ support, just to ice that cake.